Conisder Me Dead
by PaperCity7
Summary: Thanatos looked down upon her small sleeping frame, body slowly rising and falling from her soft breathing. Gently, he wrapped a single hand around her neck, knowing well enough that's all he would need to end her life. Yet he hesitates. :Language&Violence:


_a/n I apologize for re-uploading this – when I published it on fanfiction, some of the words and spacings were gone and it was quite the embarrassing mistake on my part – I hope you forgive me for being an idiot and please enjoy! _

The bridge began to creak underneath her weight and she started to feel the muscles of her shoulders and back tense. Slowly, she leaned down into a crouching position and moved forward. The rushing of the river was impossibly loud and the scent of pine so pungent that it was hard to concentrate. Nevertheless, she pushed on, eyes constantly locked onto the back of the man's neck like it was her target.

The moment she felt her bare feet touch the grass, she darted forward, practically crashing into the man's back before quickly enveloping him into a hug. He was obviously winded by the act, given the way he gasped on impact and nearly toppled over into the side of the river.

He lifted up his arm and snapped his head back but once he saw the small frame beside him, he instantly relaxed into the hug.

"You should not be out here, Ana." He chided in a serious tone but she didn't have to look up to know that a smile was playing across the old man's lips.

Straightening up, he wrapped his arm around her tightly enough so she squeezed against his side. Her hair was a cluster of brown as the wind kept flicking it up towards his face, a constant reminder that it needed cutting.

"I really must be getting old if girls are managing to surprise me." He chuckled, the wrinkles around his eyes increasing in a warm manner that made Ana almost regret the glare she was giving him.

"Girls can be stealthy." She tried to sound offended but that was always difficult, especially with Brighton, the man who had been her personal guard ever since day one.

"And you are not getting old, if you were, my father would have made you retire already." Her tone sounded obvious, like a teacher telling a student something that he should already know. Brighton scratched at the stubble on his chin, the other arm still looped around the young girl beside him.

"Speaking of your father, there is going to be a Symposium tomorrow afternoon. Not entirely sure why. At first I thought it was for your nineteenth birthday coming up but that wouldn't make any sense considering you are not allowed to attend." Brighton sighed and felt the Princess sag against him.

"Are you going to attend?" Her eyes flickered up towards him but he continued to stare out towards the water, the sound comforting them both.

"No, I have you to attend to and besides, I don't think they would want someone like me there; I'm more of a wallflower." She felt his body shake from light laughter and she smiled along as well. She understood that, Symposiums were not the most elegant of occasions but more like drunken fests with music and women for men to bed. She didn't even want to imagine Brighton at one. He would surely stick out like a sore thumb.

Ana leaned over and rested her hand upon his chest and found it odd to feel cloth and not armour. After all, these relaxing moments were always brief.

"I want you stay in your room tomorrow, alright?" He turned towards her but it was hard to make eye contact since the wind managed to push up all her hair towards her face.

"I know." Came her simple reply, surprising Brighton on how no hair managed to throw itself into her mouth while she spoke. He gave her another smile, the corners of his eyes crinkling up once again as he rose to his feet. The guard stretched out his hand towards her and she shared his smile, gently grabbing his hand and lifting herself up.

"We should hurry or else your mother will surely be pleased to see my head roll by the morn." Not letting go of her hand, he began to lead her back towards the large palace. She saw that candles had already been lit as the large windows filled with light slowly, one by one. The smell of pine was still in the air but no longer was it strong and the thrashing of the river was long behind them. Silence took over and she finally felt somewhat at peace.

"I know."

-o-

"I do not understand why we must decorate when we all know that it is going to be ripped down sooner or later by those drunkards."

"I know, imagine the things they do in that room with those _entertainers_ as well."

"Utterly revolting and we will have to be the ones cleaning it up."

"That is more than likely."

Ana listened as the servants trotted down the hallway, speaking loud enough for her to hear all the way inside her room. She wanted to tell her father the way they talk and whom they talk about but usually decided against it. It would just mean that she would be greater disliked among the servants and stress that she didn't need. Stress that her father didn't need.

Letting out a large sigh, she looked over at her books that lied limply on her desk. Brighton would usually find interesting things for her to read on days like these, when everyone else is out having fun and she is stuck in her room, miserable.

The books were about adventure, romance and drama; a huge difference from the usual boring things she reads about but she just had no ambition, so the books lied on top of each other, waiting to be read. These days always dragged on far longer than they needed to, something which Ana loathed immensely.

"How is she doing?" A familiar voice this time, not one of the servants – she knew that for sure. Quickly, she sprang to her feet and quietly rushed towards the door, pressing her ear up tightly against it.

"Good, I gave her some books earlier and I plan to be with her the entire time this evening, Milord." Awkward silence filled the air and she heard something rustling, the sound of cloth.

"I am glad to hear that. She is not angry with me, is she? I did not plan to have this so close to her birthday I assure you. Tell my daughter that we will have something twice as grand as this for when that time comes."

"Of course and no need to worry yourself, she did not seem angered when I told her earlier. I'm sure she understands."

She heard more rustling this time, a large sigh and a formal thank you before the sound of footsteps leaving. As soon as she felt the door begin to swing open, she pushed herself off and stood upright, her hands clasped behind her back. Heart racing, she was surprised that the door had not slammed her face into the wall and she was sure that her elegant expression was cracking from her rapid heartbeat.

Brighton just stared at her, not looking amused but neither angry with her. Slowly, he entered the room and shut the door behind him.

"I had a feeling you were doing that." He sighed, walked over towards her desk and Ana could feel a sudden flush coming towards her cheeks. She continued to clasp her hands together behind her back as she watched her guard pick up one of the books before flipping through the pages.

"Don't worry; I'm not angry at you. Even saves me from having to express how sorry your father is about this." He had noticed her timid look and his eyes switched to that of concern. Ana's body seemed to relax and he held up the book so its cover was in her view.

"How is it so far?" He questioned before setting it back down at its original spot. He brushed his worn hands on the smooth surface of the cover and Ana stared at the book, a pang of guilt hit her but she shrugged it off, it wasn't like this was her tutor.

"To be honest, I have not started yet." She sighed and moved towards the pile, she grabbed the book he had been holding before and brought it up to her vision, trying to remember if she maybe had read this one before.

"It's alright, I did just give them to you this morning. I was simply wondering because I grabbed them at random." He laughed and Ana could easily picture a frazzled Brighton, desperately trying to find something but giving up before grabbing an armful of books and running out.

"What do you mean? The food was to be set hours ago! I already hear them arriving!"

Brighton and Ana shared a similar look, both sporting smiles. They didn't have to think hard to know that was the Queen, Ana's mother, just by her scolding tone. Ana giggled when she saw Brighton mocking her words midway through her sentence, something that the two would usually do in the spare time but once the door slammed open, his lips instantly stopped and his attention was full on her. Her mother jabbed a finger at Brighton, her face looked like someone had splattered red paint on it but she knew that was just from the pent up rage she was feeling. Ana wondered if there was anything in the world that could calm down her mother.

"You! Come, we need all the help we can get!" Her mother nearly yelled and Brighton instantly became serious, walking towards the door with full force but then suddenly stopped once he neared the exit. He turned around and looked at Ana apologetically.

"I will be back later, I promise. Do not leave the room." His words were rushed but she already knew he was going to say that. She waved him off, looking perfectly fine with the dilemma and Brighton ran out, his loud footsteps quickly wavering off as he ran down the hallway.

She slowly walked over towards the door and snapped it shut, breathing out a heavy sigh. Of course she could take care of herself, she was nearly nineteen. Still, it was nice to have company while everyone was out having fun.

Well, all the men at least.

-o-

Lying on her back, she felt herself dip in and out of consciousness but the only thing that kept her awake was the pounding laughter a few rooms over and her stomach which was urging for food. Brighton had been gone for hours and she figured that her mother must have made him continue setting up the rooms and probably got sucked into guarding it as well. You think someone else could do it from the mass amount of servants and guards they had.

Breathing out once more, she lightly touched her stomach, contemplating if she should go find a servant to bring her something or maybe she should just stay here. A servant could even be bringing her something right at that moment. So she decided to wait for what seemed like another hour before grunting out in frustration. She rose up from her bed, brushed her hair out from her face and walked towards the door, rustling the handle to no avail – a servant had locked it.

She let out a breath of frustration. If they had found the time to keep her door shut then they surely must have the time to come and bring her something to eat. Grumbling, she moved towards a vase one of the servants had crafted for her and shoved her hand into it, feeling the glassy bottom until she snatched what she was looking for. Raising her hand out of the vase, she looked at the old key with interest as she walked back over towards the door. She was careful not to wipe her hand on her white clothes since it had become dirty while searching for the key inside the vase. Brighton was right; it was a good idea getting an extra key for the inside just in case.

Slowly, she opened the door and looked outside. There were no servants and it seemed utterly dead. Taking in a large breath, she crept outside towards the hall and made her way down towards the kitchens, still clutching the key in her grasp until it left an imprint on her palm.

She prayed that Brighton would not find out.

-o-

_A/N what a boring introduction that must have been, my apologies. _

_In case you were wondering, a __Symposium __is pretty much a party where men would go drink, __screw women __and enjoy themselves. They wouldn't do it willy-nilly, they actually had reasons. __Not a very classy king I have here for holding one. _

_Simply Google it if you wish to know more about them ;)_


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